Corona protection articles for over two million euros expired
Protective equipment from the coronavirus pandemic worth more than two million euros has expired in Hamburg. This is according to a Senate response to a minor question from the CDU parliamentary group, which is available to Deutsche Presse-Agentur. "Masks, gloves and protective suits worth a total of 2,043,354.90 euros have expired and must be destroyed," said the CDU parliamentary group's legal expert, Richard Seelmaecker, to dpa.
According to the Senate, this sum refers solely to the total value of expired protective equipment in the Social Welfare Department, the Interior Department and the State Transport Authority. No further information is available.
A central warehouse for personal protective equipment was set up in Hamburg at the start of the pandemic in 2020, according to the Senate. Items supplied by the Federal Ministry of Health and equipment procured by the city were stored there and then distributed to Hamburg's authorities and departments.
According to the Senate, the materials still in storage, which have since expired, include more than two million gloves, hundreds of thousands of masks and tens of thousands of gowns and protective suits.
These items must be disposed of. This is because: "Protective equipment that has reached or exceeded its expiry date is no longer marketable under current law," says the Senate.
"However, the Senate is not yet able to state the costs that will be incurred for the destruction," criticized Seelmaecker. So far, costs of around 2,500 euros have been incurred, according to the Senate. "Further costs cannot yet be calculated."
Despite the expiry of protective equipment worth over two million euros due to Covid-19, the senate is yet to determine the costs for their destruction. The expired items include citizens' health protection equipment such as masks, gloves, gowns, and suits from both federal and local sources.
Source: www.dpa.com
